A Life Internal ::A Fable::
by Quell-Ironheart
Summary: William Blake gets drawn into a world beyond his wildest dreams...or nightmares...after a mishap on a darkened highway during a storm.
1. The Beginning

**A Life Internal - A Fable**

**Part 1**

The rain's constant machine gun beat pounded the windshield of the grey sedan. William Blake watched the road attentively between strokes of the windshield wipers, offering an occasional eye to the briefcase in the passenger seat. The war in his mind continued as it had since he had gotten into the car and began driving two days previous; Should he have taken it? Was his escape clean? He had received the answer to the previous question the prior day. A federal agent named Cole had stopped at the hotel where he had spent the night and questioned most of the guests. Thankfully William had made his hasty escape before being confronted, but now he wondered. Could he know? Could he be back there following me right now?

Maybe it was his loss of focus as he asked himself these questions, maybe it was the exhaustion of being on the road, but he was unable to react in time when the shape quickly darted out in front of his car, connecting with his bumper with a sickly thump. He locked up his wet brakes, bringing the car to a skidding halt and tightly gripped the steering wheel in his shaking hands. "Jesus...." He muttered to himself nervously, "Jesus fucking Christ..." Slowly he forced one hand from the wheel to the doorhandle and pulled it. The click of the door opening announced the magnification of the sound of the rain pounding the pavement and the tree line along the country road. Slowly he stepped from the car, almost immediately soaked to the bone, he grabbed the flashlight from beneath the seat and walked back to where the collision had been.

The beam of light from the (thankfully) waterproof flashlight danced in front of him as he scanned the road with a tremble from the cold of the storm. A few yards walk from his car he saw it: a shadow in the middle of the road; and as he got closer its human features became apparent. "Oh fucking Jesus..." He said again, this time with terror in his voice. He'd be caught for sure now, even if he left it would be hit and run, murder in any judges book after his already open record. "He kneeled beside the body and nudged it, it replied with a moan of pain. Blake answered this with a sigh of relief, "Are you alright?" He asked as he very carefully rolled the person over, seeing that it was a young girl, the storm prevented his further perceptions as visibility was still not good. The girl did not answer, instead she just looked at him. Blake sighed, and lifted her into his arms, he may be a thief, but he was no killer. He carried her to his car and laid her on his back seat, securing her as best he could with a blanket and the seatbelts so she didn't get thrown around too much as he drove.

The engine came back to life as he turned the key. A plan began to formulate in his mind, he would drop her off at the nearest hospital...surely there's one nearby, and simply leave. Noone would be the wiser, and even so, he'd be long gone. He glance in his rearview at the girl, getting a good look at her at last as he began driving down the quiet road again. She looked no older than 12, maybe 13 at most. Her long brown hair was matted to her face from the downpour and her green eyes gazed out blankly from behind it. Though she didn't speak she stared back at him in the mirror almost eerily, her eyes moving to stay with his. "Don't worry...I'm going to get some help...just hang on back there, ok?" He said, really not sure if he was reassuring the girl or himself. The girl simply blinked in response, which only made him realize how very little she did this, in fact this was the first time she had. Odd, he thought. Another mile up the road and the headlights illuminated a sign at the side of the road: SILENT HILL - 3 MILES. Another sigh of relief, hopefully there would be somewhere he could get the girl medical attention. He continued up the road until he saw the exit and took it, driving into the town of Silent Hill.

As he came into the town, he was instantly taken by a feeling that he could not place. A feeling of dread unlike anything he had ever felt. This almost primal fear screamed in his mind, demanding that he turn around now, leave this place and take the girl elsewhere. He reassured himself, certain that it was only his paranoia of being caught scaring him. Besides, he had no idea how far off the next town was, nor did he know the extent of the child's injuries. He looked into the mirror at her, still staring back at him wordlessly. "Now...to find a hospital" He said, looking for some clue of one's location. He stopped the car as he saw a rest stop just inside the town. Surely they would know where to find a hospital. He looked back to the girl over his shoulder, "I'll be right back...just stay here and wait"

He climbed from the car and approached the door of the rest stop. Above it was a sign that read: Welcome to Silent Hill, Leave Your Worries At The Door! Cute joke, he thought grimly and pulled the door handle with surprisingly no result. "You have to be FUCKING kidding me" He punched the locked door in anger, punctuation the blow with, "SHIT!" He leaned his head against the door with a soft thud and saw the map on the ground. He picked it up and looked over it. Thankfully it had been spared the storm's wrath from the canopy over the door. He hurried back to the car to better see it.

As he climbed back into the car and closed the door he gazed into the rearview to check on his passenger. His heart lept to his throat as he saw the serious face of Agent Cole staring back at him, along with the pistol in his hand. "You're going to burn for this one, Mr. Blake, I'll see to it personally." He twisted around in his seat quickly, a shocked expression on his face turning quickly to confusion as the vision in the mirror was replaced by the child still laying on the seat, again staring at him silently. No sign of the federal agent remained in the car or in the mirror as he looked back into it, half expecting to see it again. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "C'mon Bill...you're letting this shit get to you...don't start cracking now." He got his labored breathing under control and looked down at the map he had found. The words Brookhaven Hospital practically jumped out at him. He wasted no time putting the car in gear and following the map to Brookhaven.

He pulled into the hospital's parking lot and got out, telling his speechless passenger that he would return in a moment before heading into the building. He was greeted by darkness, which was hardly what he expected. "Hello?" His voice echoed through the silent halls, "Is anybody here?" He found no response other than the rain against the building. The fear he had felt when he had first arrived again rose from the pit of his stomach. Something just isn't right here. The feeling became so strong that he returned to the car and climbed back into the drivers seat. He turned around to face the girl and was startled to realize that she was no longer there. He tightly closed his eyes, thinking it was only his mind playing tricks on him again. They opened again to greet the sight of the empty seat. In fact, there was no sign that anyone had been there at all, the blanket was folded neatly where it had been on the floor behind the passenger seat, there were no bloodstains or even wet spots on the seat from the girl's soaked clothing.

It was at this point that the fear he had felt finally won over in his mind. He turned the ignition key, now fully decided that he was going to put as many miles between himself and this town as he could in the shortest time his motor's limitations would allow. The starter made a clicking sound as it sparked, but nothing further. "Oh no...."He said, trying again with no success, "No...nonononononono...." The car's inability to start only fueled his dread. He punched the steering wheel, the horn honking once at the impact as if to announce the car's victory over its stranded driver. He picked up the flashlight again, "Just great....just fucking great." He climbed out of the car again and proceeded into the hospital, hoping to find a phone. He stopped a few steps from the car and went to the passenger side door to get his briefcase. No way am I going to leave this out here, he thought. As he opened the door, he realized something else missing from the car along with the girl. "Son of a BITCH!!!!" He swore loudly, his voice echoing through the quiet parking lot. Ten million, all unmarked bills, completely untraceable once he had left the country. But now, it was gone along with the cheap briefcase he had hidden it in when he emptied the safe of the jewelry store he had worked for. "Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" His palm struck the side of the car with a thud with each time he repeated the phrase. "Where are you?!" He shouted, shining the flashlight beam around energetically. He began searching the parking lot, shining the beams in and under all of the parked cars. He reached the gate he had driven in and made another unpleasant discovery, it was closed and chained with several padlocks, barring his only obvious way out. He dropped to his knees, the flashlight clattering to the ground as he screamed out hopelessly. He turned and sat on the ground with his back to the gate, face buried in his hands. As he gradually pulled them away he saw a glimmer of hope: on the third floor of the hospital, a single room was illuminated, its yellow glow a contrast to the blackness of the rest of the building. He again took the flashlight and proceeded inside, he swallowed his fear and hid behind his light source as he began to explore Brookhaven Hospital for a stairwell.

To Be Continued...


	2. The Journey

**A Life Internal - A Fable**

**Part 2**

"Working late again?" The old man asked, "You're gonna kill yourself if you don't enjoy life more, Bill." William Blake looked up from the paperwork on his desk with a chuckle, "So you always tell me...these books aren't going to balance themselves though. Better to take care of it now rather than worrying about it in the morning." "Balance away my boy, but don't be so hard on it." the old man replied, his voice traveling off as he headed for the door of the jewelry store, "I've never seen an accountant take so much pride in his work." Blake heard the sound of the door closing and the turn of the lock signifying the old man having left for the evening. The accountant put his pen down with a resounding click as the plastic met the oak of the table and he waited for a moment, listening nervously to ensure his solidarity. He took deep breaths, assuring himself that this would work, the old man's paranoia of banks would pay off in his favor tonight. Part of him felt remorse for what he was doing as he turned the dial of the large, heavy iron safe in the back office of the store, after all, this was the old man's life savings and the culmination of several generations business

But ever since he had seen its contents, he had dreamed of the day he would make it his own.

With a click and squeaking of aging machinery, the safe opened. The large pile of bundled bills never ceased to fill William with a feeling of awe. So much money in one place, he thought to himself. Indeed many times had he done only this, opening the safe after hours while he was alone and simply looking at it. It wasn't until today however that he had finally mustered the courage to bring his thoughts to fruition. He took his briefcase, a cheap thing he had gotten from a secondhand store, and began filling it. He stacked the bundles of bills into neat piles in the case with a smirk of satisfaction. His work finished, he closed the safe and turned his attention to the old man's filing cabinet. He searched until he found his employment record and put that in the case as well to be destroyed later. No sense in making finding him easy.

Moments later he was loading the case into the passenger seat of his car, handling it carefully as one would treat a child being placed in a car seat. He then climbed into the driver's seat and started his engine, taking another deep breath to steady his shaking hands as the gravity of what he was doing began sinking in. No use worrying about it now, he tried convincing himself, Just head for Canada and once you cross the border, you'll be safe until you think of something else. He pulled out of the parking lot, concentrating on the road and the trip ahead of him rather than his cargo.

The next day proved a difficult one as his journey continued. The previous nights sleep in the hotel room was hardly restful as the old man's face haunted and awakened him frequently. In his groggy and dazed state he had narrowly missed several collisions with traffic until he bought a bottle of No Doze from a gas station to help keep him awake. As the day grew late though, it became obvious he would have to stop and sleep soon, or else risk falling asleep at the wheel from exhaustion. He pulled off the road to the next hotel he found and got a room for the night, hoping his rest would be more peaceful.

As he lay on the freshly washed sheets and closed his eyes he again questioned the wisdom of what he had done. He wondered to himself what had happened to the old man, who must have discovered his deceit by now. Never in his life had he ever done anything like this, but the sight of that money, it still excited him now just thinking about it. Gradually he drifted off to a dream filled sleep, but at least it was a deep one.

He awakened to the sound of voices outside. Curious he cracked the room door open and peeked outside. Standing down the hall was the hotel manager speaking to a man in a suit. He could not hear the conversation though he was quite sure he saw his own name on the suited man's lips and shortly thereafter saw the FBI marking on the man's ID as he showed it to the hotel manager. His heart jumped to his throat and he closed the door as quietly as possible. "Shit!" He hissed under his breath. He frantically looked around the room, searching for a way out. Thankfully he had no luggage in the room, all he had brought remained in the car; now it was just a matter of reaching it undetected. His eyes fell on an air vent that looked big enough for him to fit through. Quickly he stood on a chair and set about getting the cover off of it. As the vent came off in his hands with a dull clank he heard a knock at his room door, "Mr. Blake? I'm Agent Cole with the I speak with you for a moment? I have some questions I need to ask you." He wormed his body into the vent and pulled the cover back onto it behind him as he made his way through the tight passage. Several moments later he heard the sound of wood splintering as the door to his room was bashed open, all the reason to move faster. After several moments of cramped exploration he came to a vent below him. As he peered through it he was greeted with the red glow of an exit sign to which he breathed a sigh of relief. He shifted around carefully trying to expand his view of all else below him. Seeing that the coast was clear he opened the vent and cautiously lowered himself to the floor. He wasted no time in vacating the building and running for his car, pulling out and not looking back.

As he traveled the roads he began considering the near disaster at the hotel. He would have to think this out more than he had, obviously. No more hotels, that was a given. Also he decided he would stay off of the main roads. No sense in being easily tracked, especially since it had been proven that he was not all that hard to find. Almost as soon as he this thought crossed his mind he saw a turnoff from the highway nearly hidden by foliage. A nearby sign read: Exit 13 - Silent Hill. Perfect, he thought, this should confuse them for awhile. He turned onto the aged road and smiled for the first time since leaving the store with his prize. Despite the approaching storm, things were looking up.

Funny, Blake thought as he replayed the past few days events in his head as the flashlight beam danced in front of him. After all that, here he was chasing some damned little girl around an empty hospital while terrified for his life for no clear reason he could see. No use dwelling on it though, he said to himself in his mind, just focus on the task at hand, and this will all work out.

To be continued...


	3. The Betrayal

**A Life Internal - A Fable**

**Part 3**

"Hello?" William Blake's flashlight beam danced through the long hallway, searching for a source to the scuffling sound he thought he had just heard. The illumination revealed no more than the dilapidated walls of the seemingly abandoned hospital. He forced himself to remain calm, repeating over and over in his mind that there was nothing here other than a spooky old building and hopefully a little girl carrying a lot of money that she would soon be relieved of.

Most of the doors he passed seemed to have broken latches or were blocked on the other side as no matter how hard he pushed or pulled they remained closed. He had begun to pass the third such door as he heard a creaking sound and it opened slightly. Blake stared at its narrow opening for several moments, almost expecting someone to come out. He was unsure if he should be relieved or unnerved by the lack thereof as he pushed lightly on the previously sealed door with the butt of the flashlight. At the pressure the door creaked open further, revealing the darkened room behind it. He opened the door the rest of the way and stepped inside, the beam of the flashlight followed his field of vision as he scanned over the contents of the room. At one point it was probably a common room of sorts. A television, screen blackened with dirt and dust, sat in one corner. The rest of the room was lightly furnished: there was a couch, a few recliners, a bookshelf holding several dust covered volumes, and a wooden cabinet with its doors closed and a rusted lock holding a chain that secured it closed. As he took a second step into the room, he started and dropped his flashlight at a loud metallic clattering sound at his feet. He scrambled for the fallen light and shined it on the spot near where he was standing. The light reflected off of the polished surface of the .38 revolver, its obvious good condition a contradiction to the rest of his surroundings. Cautiously he picked it up, feeling its weight in his right hand as he examined it with the flashlight with his left. The short firearms course he had taken years ago at his local gun club began to slowly come back to him. Though he was by no means an expert, he at least knew some basics. The cylinder was loaded with 5 shells, the sixth was merely a casing and was warm to the touch as was the barrel. William shook his head, dispelling the notion that it was almost as if it had been fired recently. Surely he would have heard gunfire?

The weapon was at least a small comfort to him, some protection was better than none of course. But as he turned from the room another sound from within it brought a lump to his throat. This one, a scraping sound, he could not locate with the flashlight. His trembling hand pointed the revolver around nervously as he listened again. Several moments of silence passed, and then, there it was again. This time he could tell, it was coming from the closed cabinet on the other side of the room. With shaking hands and raspy breath he approached the cabinet cautiously, the sound continued on the other side of its doors, gradually growing louder. The chains clinked and clanked as the doors they bound moved from whatever was scraping against them. He was close now, five steps away, when he heard another sound. He glanced over to see the television in the corner had come on, filling its screen and shoddy speaker with white noise. The sound of static grew louder as did the sounds within the cabinet. The terror swelling within him grew as his shaking hand reached out for the lock securing the cabinet. Its aged, rusted metal broke off in his hand and the cabinet doors opened from the pressure against them. With a sickly thump a corpse fell from the cabinet and onto the floor, at its impact the television again went silent and William's heart leaped to his throat.

Gradually he calmed himself, and let the lightbeam fall onto the nude body that lie before him. It almost didn't look human; its flesh blackened and oily and a large tumor like growth was on its back. He kneeled down to look closer at it, and distantly he could hear the static of the television again. It started very soft, but grew in volume until the sound was nearly deafening, though he ceased to notice the sound as his attention was drawn by a movement on the body. The growth on its back seemed to pulse once, then again, then it began doing so with a rhythm that resembled a heartbeat. William began crawling backwards across the floor away from the body. He raised the gun at it as the rest of it began moving. It pushed itself to its feet, and with a moan of what sounded like agony raised its head and looked directly at him. Or at least that's what it seemed, for all Blake could see, the creature had no face. There was only the twisted, decayed-looking flesh covering its head. It began to shamble towards him with slow movements, its feet moving clumsily one in front of the other. As it grew nearer the large growth on its back seemed to deflate as long bony spikes erupted through its flesh on the front of its torso. Blake could no longer withhold the scream of terror and as it erupted through his lungs, he opened fire. The bullets tore through the creature, red splashes announced each one's entry into its body. It let loose another agonizing cry and collapsed again to the floor. The room went silent again except for the clicking of the empty pistol as William pulled the trigger again and again, staring blankly at the lump on the floor. He stood, still dazed but enough of him returning to realize the gun empty, and began stomping on the beast, his shoes tearing more holes in its wounded body. He fell again to the ground, panting heavily from exhaustion and covered in blood from the corpse in front of him. "What the fuck....what the fuck....what the fuck...." He repeated these words like a mantra to himself as he stared at it. "Jesus...sweet Jesus...what the fuck...."

What seemed like hours passed before he was able to regain enough of his composure to stand and leave the room. He pocketed the empty pistol as he came back out to the hallway anc closed the door behind him without looking back. "What the fuck is this place?" He leaned against the wall for a moment and took a deep breath. He forced himself to put one foot in front of the other and continue further into the hospital, now more frightened than ever of what may await him in the illuminated room he had seen from outside.

To be continued...


	4. The Collector

**A Life Internal - A Fable**

**Part 4**

-Author's note- I apologize ahead of time for any errors in this chapter, part was written while I had the flu and was heavily medicated (indeed when I proofread it, it was new to me .) I fixed most of it but I may have missed a part or two.

William Blake managed to find a stairwell without further encounter. However this did not relieve the feeling of dread growing inside of him and his complete confusion from the nightmare he found himself in. He ascended the stairs to the third floor but found the door leading to it locked. With a frustrated growl he returned to the second floor and found it unlocked.

As he opened the door leading onto the hospital's second floor he was immediately greeted by the sight of another creature like the one he had seen in the day room. His heart skipped a beat at the sight, but he calmed as he realized that the creature was not moving. In fact, it seemed to be floating several inches off of the ground. Cautiously, he approached it, his hand resting on the empty pistol in his pocket. As he inspected with it his flashlight beam he saw that it was covered in a sickly black fluid, a strand of which attached to the ceiling being the reason for its levitation. It also had several jagged lacerations all over its malformed body.

Blake spun around, shining the flashlight beam behind him as he thought he heard a distant sound. The warped walls and dirty floor of the hallway were all he could see. He turned his attention back to the corpse, and almost immediately heard another sound, a scuttling sound, almost like that of high healed shoes on a tile floor, but it had a much quicker pace and came in short bursts, making it almost impossible to pinpoint as it echoed through the empty hallway. William had not realized that the sound was growing closer until he felt a hot breath against the back of his neck.

Its body was shaped almost like a worm. Four spines extended from its oblong body to the ground, serving as its legs. The upper portion of its body was humanoid, though its face was not. Three black eyes adorned its forehead and shined like polished onyx in the terrified man's flashlight beam. Its long arms ended in freakishly long claws, which were constantly in motion as its fingers made seemingly involuntary waving movements. It stared at Blake, its raspy breath the only sound heard. It raised its claws to strike and Blake's survival instinct overrode his fear. He turned and ran with everything he could find within himself.

Behind him he heard the angry, inhuman roar followed by the rapid clicking of spines on the hard floor as the creature began pursuit. Blake didn't even pay attention to where he was going anymore, all he knew was that he had to get away. He quickly twisted the knob of a door as he passed it and dove into the room, thanking heaven that it was unlocked. He slammed it shut behind him and sat with his back against it, gasping for breath. He jolted to a sharp impact against the door. The creature frantically scratched and pounded at the door for several moments but then the sound stopped suddenly all outside was silent.

Finally William looked up and surveyed the room, it was a normal hospital room with a bed in one corner with a night stand beside it. The white bed sheets were stained brown and the frame was rusted. On the wall above the bed was a single window and now he allowed himself to move away from the door and look out of it. Below he could see the parking lot and it took him several moments before he realized that there was nothing left of his car but a frame that looked as though it had sat for years without being touched. "What the..." He muttered. "That's not...that can't be..." Though he had little hope for his car since it had decided to choose this night of all nights to stop running, this still dropped him to his knees. What the hell was happening in this place, how was this all possible. It was like he had stepped into another world, or someone's nightmare.

He sat there for a long time, now wondering if it was worth even moving at all. Whatever awaited in that lighted room surely was not human. Not after all he had seen up to this point. He was trapped, plain and simple. There was no telling how long it had been before the sound of a phone ringing brought him back to his senses. He looked beside him, and there on the night stand was an old style rotary phone. Had it been there before? He couldn't remember. Slowly his hand moved to the receiver and lifted it and after swallowing the lump in his throat he lifted it to his head,

"Hello?"


	5. The Illumination

**A Life Internal - A Fable**

**Part 5**

It was a surprise to him that the voice that responded was human. "Hello Mr. Blake, its good that I finally get to speak with you." The voice was eerily calm, every word said very precisely. Blake, on the other hand, sounded exasperated and bordered on insanity, "Who the hell are you and how do you know me?" There was a chuckle on the other line in response, "Now, Mr. Blake", the voice said, "That's hardly polite."

Polite?!, thought William, Who the hell is this guy? As if he knew what Blake was thinking the voice spoke again, "How rude of me, though I can't give my name just yet, I will say that I wish to help you. In order to do that though, I'll need you to get to where I am."

"And just how am I supposed to do that with all those things out there?"

"Mr. Blake? Are you feeling alright?" The voice said, still calm.

"I don't know anymore, I've been attacked twice, my car is trashed, that little bitch stole my briefcase..."

The voice cut him off there, "I'm not sure what you mean Mr. Blake, you car looks fine from here and right now, I have your briefcase."

"What the hell are you talking about, my car..." Blake stood and looked out the window again at the heap his car had become, he felt the intended words leave his mind as he saw his car sitting in the lot perfectly intact. "I...I..."

"Now as I was saying Mr. Blake, I need you to come to where I am. I don't know who attacked you, but if it makes you feel any safer you can check the drawer on the night stand the phone was on. There should be an evacuation plan on the wall as well, that will help guide you, right now you are in Room M1 on the second floor if you use the second stairwell you should be able to reach the third floor. I will be in examining room 4. Please hurry as there is much to be done." With this statement there was a click and the line went dead.

Blake sat with mouth agape for several moments, still holding the phone to his ear. Was this all in his head? He knew what he saw when he looked outside. He shook it off. "Get it together, Bill," He muttered to himself. He looked on the wall and saw the evacuation plan that the man on the phone had mentioned. He walked over to it and pulled at its edge and it gave way easily.

He was starting out of the room when he remembered what the man had said about the drawer in the night stand. Cautiously he returned to it and pulled the drawer open. Several bullets thrown randomly into the drawer rolled to its front. He examined one and saw that it was the same size the gun he currently carried took. He was beyond asking why at this point and he simply reloaded his gun and pocketed the rest.

With the gun in one hand and the evacuation plan in the other he cracked the door slightly, awaiting the return of the beast that had attacked him earlier. When it didn't come he opened the door the rest of the way and was greeted by dim ultraviolet light illuminated a pristine white hallway. Indeed this hardly even looked like the same hospital he had been exploring previously. He tried to stay focused and kept reminding himself: find this asshole, get some answers.

Keeping his newly reloaded gun pointed ahead of him he started for the stairwell marked on his map. He was thankful for the light, but could not understand. He knew he had seen the decayed walls and darkened hallways. Unless he was losing his mind, there was no way that this was possible. But he couldn't be losing his mind, he was still spattered with the blood of the first creature that had attacked him. Why hadn't that disappeared if all he had seen had not been real.

He found the stairwell and began his ascent. As he walked out onto the third floor he was greeted by a familiar clicking sound that returned the lump to his throat.


	6. The Abscounder

**A Life Internal - A Fable**

**Part 6**

Damn it, Blake thought, that fucking thing moved to this floor. He wondered deep down if it somehow knew where to look for him. Hell, at this point why should he not believe that the man he had spoken to had not directed it here somehow. Slowly he backed into the doorway and let the door close most of the way. He watched the hallway through the narrowly opened door and sure enough within a few moments he saw the silhouette of the beast that had chased him on the floor below. It stopped shortly passed the door and he heard a sharp raspy sound as it sniffed the air suddenly. Blake closed his eyes tightly and held his breath as he waited for the beast to notice him. But, a moment later, it gave up and continued on its way.

Blake waited until the clicking of its bony legs was barely audible before stepping quietly out into the hallway. He referred to the map on the evacuation plan he carried from the room where he had spoken to the odd man on the phone. Examining Room 2 seemed to be through the door in front of him and part way down the hallway behind it. Better get moving before that thing comes back, he thought to himself.

As he approached the door, almost instantly he was filled with the feeling of something out of place. He hesitated before opening it, and began unconsciously backing away towards the stairwell door. His hand dropped to the gun in his pocket and drew it as he thought he saw a nearby shadow move and he spun to face it. Just as he turned he saw it again out of the corner of his eye in front of the door he had been about to open. He turned again to see but again the movement remained out of his direct line of sight. His frantic search ended quickly though at the sound of the roar of the creature from before as it spotted him.

Blake raised the gun and turned on his flashlight, waiting for the beast to come into his sight. As soon as the light caught it he opened fire. The beast let loose another roar, this time of pain as three bullets struck it squarely in the face. Its humanoid limbs raised to its face and buried it in its hands as it writhed in pain. Blake stood his ground now, with the gun still trained on the beast. The beast raised back up on its back four legs as if to charge again when William caught sight of movement again in the shadows beside him, this time it made a beeline for the wounded large beast.

The light caught something that looked human, but was crawling on all fours on the ceiling. Its completely black body made it nearly impossible to discern from the darkness of the hallway except for its hands, which looked like a normal human's hands rather than something that would be connected to a monstrosity like this.

Almost too quickly to follow it dropped from the ceiling and landed atop the beast with a snarl and grabbed its head in its hands. The beast wrenched its head to the side and bit its attacker in the wrist hard enough to sever the hand completely. The shadow creature shrieked and grabbed on harder with its remaining hand. It wrenched the beast's head back until Blake heard an audible crack from its neck as it snapped. The beast fell to floor, lifeless.

Blake stood frozen, all this had happened so fast he was completely at loss of what to do. He could only observe now as the shadowy creature lowered off of the dead beast's back and pulled one of its arms out from under it. From the stub that remained on its arm from where its hand had been bitten off, a long sword-like blade erupted with a metallic sound. It set to work cutting the hand from the dead beast. After it came free with the sound cracking bones and tendons, the creature retracted the blade into its arm and pressed the hand to the stub. Within moments the hand was moving again and grafted itself onto the shadowy creature.

With a raspy sound that almost sounded like laughter the creature looked up at William and raised its new hand to point at him. Before it leaped back to the ceiling and raced towards him. Blake panicked and ran for the door he had first tried to enter. He raced through it and slammed it shut behind him. He heard the creature hit the door and its frame shook, it was obvious that this would not hold for long.

The examining room, he wasn't far from it now, if he could just make it there, maybe he would be fine. He had barely stepped away from the door when a concept that he took for granted presented itself in a manner he did not at all expect. He heard the latch of the door click, and it opened as the creature stopped beating on the door and simply opened it.

The light in this hallway was better and now Blake could see the creature better. He could see now that the hand that it retained from its battle looked like it was from a human, but most certainly the rest of it was not. Its skin was so dark that it seemed to absorb the light as it struck it. Even its eyes, though visible, were completely black as the peered at William blankly. It stood up onto its back legs and started approaching Blake as he began backing away, now scrambling for an idea for escape. His fear had been so great that he had forgotten about the gun, as it occurred to him he raised it and pointed it at the creature. It stopped in its tracks and stared at him silently for a moment.

Suddenly it roared as if in incredible pain and fell to its knees. Its human hand gripped the wrist of his other, the one he had just removed from the dead beast. The skin covering its body seemed to bubble and contort as it fell onto the ground still roaring painfully. Four spikes erupted from its sides and as they emerged fully, Blake realized that they were like the legs of the creature that lay dead in the previous hallway. The shadow creature's body began to elongate and Blake now began to understand what was happening. He turned and ran as fast as he could towards the examination room door.

The roars in hallway behind him became deeper and more familiar and the ones he had been running from earlier. He reached the door and turned its handle. It was locked. "FUCK!" Blake screamed as he beat on the door, "OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR!" He turned to around to look down the hall where he had come from just in time to see the large beast, now fully formed, swing a claw at his torso. The blow caught him with nearly its full force. He could feel the blood flow from the wound but was unable to see its severity before a second shot connected to his head. Blake sailed several feet through the air and struck the ground hard. The hallway dimmed and became fuzzy and he lost consciousness.

**To be continued...**

(heh...did you really think I'd end it like that :-p)


	7. The Revelation

**A Life Internal - A Fable**

**Part 7**

(Previous chapter was updated at the time that this was posted as well)

In the blackness that followed, Blake saw many things. The old man's face cackled madly at him while faceless FBI agents chased him relentlessly. Slowly the agents began to take other shapes, terrifying senseless shapes, not at all human. He asked himself constantly: Am I dead? Is this what hell is like?

He ran and ran through the blackness that swam about him for what seemed like an eternity before light began to creep into his vision. It became brighter and brighter and slowly a picture faded into view. It was a ceiling with a bright light fixture directly centered in his field of view. He now realized that he could not move and wondered if he indeed even had a body to move. Maybe he was just a spirit trapped in this place where he now found himself.

"Mr Blake? Oh...so good of you to join us at last, I was afraid that maybe you had slipped too far under and we would be finished before you awoke." A familiar voice...where had he heard it. A phone...Blake remembered a phone.

"I'm afraid its slightly difficult...It may be hard for you to focus or speak back right now as we had to sedate you...the drugs were rather strong I'm afraid, but quite effective."

Was he a Doctor? If he was he didn't sound like his usual physician, Dr Miller. Maybe an associate. Well, in any case, he was in good hands, whatever was wrong would be taken care of. Indeed the man even said that he was nearly finished.

Something began creeping into Blake's mind, only a small voice, but a coherent one.

Not right...something's not right here.

"As I was saying Mr Blake, the drugs are very effective, alas I'm sure your feeling their side effects as I speak now. I imagine you are quite disoriented, don't fret though, it will pass."

Not right...what's not right here?

Blake felt a odd feeling in the pit of his stomach, a tingling, strange very strange and it only seemed to add further to the nagging in the back of his mind.

NOT RIGHT!

Blake again tried to move, the realization now dawned on his that he was strapped down.

"Hmm...I don't know that I can get it all, Mr. Blake...but I promise you that I will do my absolute best."

A phone, why was he thinking about a phone? It was right there...there was a phone...in a hospital; room. Now it was there, the hospital, the child he had brought there, the monsters he had encountered and the one human voice that he had heard since his arrival there, the very voice he was listening to now. So he was a doctor, maybe he understood what was happening here. Thank God he had found him when he had.

NOT

But...what if...

RIGHT!

What if he was not what he sounded like...

Wrong

Blake now lifted his head, thankfully it didn't seem strapped down. He craned his neck to look about the room.

WRONG!

It was definitely a medical facility, no doubt about that. Medical tools were located all about the room, all very neatly kempt. As his gaze moved around the room he caught a gaze of the source of the voice he had heard and it looked human. A man, about 5 feet tall. He wore surgical scrubs and a mask, also he had goggles over his eyes, possibly to magnify his work. It was hard to see his face, but he looked human enough to Blake. So what's not right here.

ALL WRONG!

That was when Blake saw the work that needed magnified. The Doctor had Blake's briefcase sitting next to him. It was now nearly empty, though the question of where it had gone was answered when the Doctor picked up one of the remaining bundles of cash and with delicate grace inserted it into the incision that Blake could now see in his own stomach.

"As you can see, Mr Blake, everything is going to be just fine." The voice from beneath the surgeon's mask was as deliberate and calm as ever, almost soothing.

It was then that Blake started screaming.

"Now...Mr Blake...please do calm yourself."

Blake screamed and struggled against the straps that held him down, they were so tight that he couldn't move at all.

"Mr Blake, I will not ask you again...if you cannot be civil, I will have to put you under again."

Blake was hysterical now, logic had left and he was not hearing anything as he struggled frantically.

"Very well then, Mr Blake. You leave me little choice."

There was a quick pain in his forearm and that was it, the darkness from moments ago fell again.

The darkness again began to swirl into light as Blake opened his eyes. This time he found himself in a white room, the walls were padded. The realization that he was in an isolation cell for mental patients now dawned on him. His stomach, he saw as looked down at it, had a large bandage over whatever wound lie behind it. Slowly he crawled into a corner of the room and hugged his knees into his chest. What the hell had happened...where was he? What kind of place is this?


	8. Epilogue:: The Deception

**A Life Internal - A Fable**

**Epilogue**

Cole's flashlight beam danced through the empty hallways of the hospital. He had to admit, it was quite an ingenious place for the cocky fuck to hide. He would never had found it if the guy hadn't been so careless as to leave his car sitting right out in front of the place.

"Why the fuck do they put so many rooms in these damn places?" Cole asked to nobody in particular and silence answered him. He had began searching room by room what felt like hours ago and he had found no sign of the Blake guy.

As he went he came across a series of doors made of thick steel and locked from outside with deadbolts. After looking inside of one he realized that they were the isolation cells for mentally ill patients. Their padded walls ensured that they could not harm themselves.

He nearly passed up the rest of them entirely, surely he wouldn't be in a room locked from the outside, when he heard a sound that sounded a lot like heavy breathing coming from the last one in the row. Cautiously he approached it and opened the door, leading with the automatic handgun he carried in the hand opposite his flashlight. As the door opened he was surprised to find that the room was dimly lit; not only that, but it was also inhabited.

"Alright Blake, its been quite an experience for the both of us I'm sure...but its over now."

He said with a smirk. Here he had nearly been afraid that this guy would be waiting for him with a weapon or have trapped the place. But here the guy was just sitting in the corner of this cell by himself staring into space.

Blake did not respond at all, instead he continued to stare at the doorway where Cole stood. Cole felt his temper flare slightly, "Maybe you didn't hear me, fuckbag, its over, get on your damn feet and take me to where you stashed the money." Again, Blake did not move or respond at all. "My patience is running out. That was a lot of money you ran off with and I have absolutely no difficulties putting a bullet in your head right now and finding it myself in this God forsaken place if need be." That was an idle threat but he made it sound as convincing as he could, it had been far too difficult for him to track this guy down. That FBI act he had used back at the hotel when he had first caught up with him had not been easy to pull off, counterfeit badges cost a small fortune on their own these days, but be damned if some amateur like this was going to beat him to a job. He had cased that store for weeks, he knew everything about it: the employees, the owner, the safe...everything. And this little shit comes along and snatches the loot right out from underneath of him. He wouldn't kill him, yet, but he certainly would make his shortened life hell until he told him where the money was hidden.

"I'll count to five, Blake. You had better answer me by then...I'm not leaving here without that money," Cole's eyes narrowed at Blake and he leveled the gun on him. With these words, though, Blake finally reacted, his lips parted slightly as if to cough, but instead emitted the sound of a light chuckle. "Don't fuck with me Blake!" He fired a shot into the wall to William's side in anger. "Where's the money? Tell me NOW!" Blake began chuckling harder, the light chuckle evolved into hysterical full blown laughter. Cole wondered to himself now if this guy hadn't lost it.

The laughter came to an abrupt halt and Blake's gaze now fell on the hallway behind Cole, the look on his face was one of absolute terror. Cole followed the gaze with his gun, and standing behind him was a little girl looking up at him with a cute grin. In one hand she had a briefcase that he recognized as the one Blake had carried out of the store when he had fled. She had the money! He reached out for it without pausing to see her other hand until the scalpel it held was embedded into his outstretched forearm. He yelled in pain and dropped his gun in surprise. As it struck the ground the child quickly ran off into the darkness. Like hell, Cole thought, you won't get away from me. He gave chase, not even stopping to retrieve his gun in his anger. He followed the sound of her footsteps up a flight of steps and emerged into a ruined hallway, its walls browned and decayed. "Where are you, you little bitch...I'm gonna make you pay for that trick of yours"

Off in the distance he heard her giggle and her footsteps echoed, but in the empty building it was almost impossible to discern them from the echo they made. He whipped around with the flashlight, looking all around him frantically for her. It was then that he heard another sound. It sounded like...clicking? Something warm blew on the back of Cole's neck and he turned to see its source.

The End


End file.
